Musings on Bali - Susan Fox

Late in 2010, I spent three weeks in Bali, partly as a holiday and partly (of course!) with a view to setting a book there. Travel is always a learning experience, and I’d like to share a few impressions.


I went with expectations (we always do, don’t we?), and where did they come from? The book and movie Eat Pray Love. Yes, popular culture really does influence us.

Did I expect to meet a sexy Brazilian who looked like Javier Bardem? Nope, but I did expect serenity, with quiet country roads running through rice paddies. And they did exist – but more often the roads were clogged with traffic like I’d never seen before. Dozens of exhaust-belching vehicles compete for the same small patch of road. More than half those vehicles are small, buzzing motorbikes, many carrying three or four family members – who are often unhelmeted and barefoot. And, by the way, they drive on the opposite side of the road from at home. So one of my first Bali lessons was to not get too locked into my expectations, but be open to observing and learning.

Traffic’s different, scenery’s different, you can’t read any signs, almost every house has its own temple in the yard – and as a tourist from the West, you’re outside your comfort zone. But what’s wrong with that? In fact, most of us should seek more often to move outside our comfort zone, to push ourselves and expand our horizons, and our minds. (All the same, I really, really wanted to get helmets on all those little kids!)

As for those serene rice paddies – rice is big business in Bali and people work very hard at it. As an author, I have my own business and I long ago learned that it takes organizational skills, lots of hard work, and day-to-day discipline to succeed. I only hope that the books I produce give as much enjoyment to readers as the rice paddies in Bali gave me as I passed by.

Hard to say which was more lovely, the spectacular acres of green rice shoots, or the incredible flowers. Thank heavens for digital cameras, so I could take as many pics as I wanted.

Photography’s a hobby, but writing is my career, so I must tell you that today is release day for the third book in my Wild Ride to Love series, His, Unexpectedly. I’m thrilled that Publishers Weekly gave it a starred review. They called it “a contemporary love story sure to make readers go weak in the knees” and said, “Well-crafted story lines and richly observed characters bolster a strong erotic element in this delightful, memorable romance.”

Bali is a place many people visit in hopes of finding their own personal balance. Interestingly, Jenna and Mark in His, Unexpectedly are on a similar journey – though theirs takes them up the coast road from California to Vancouver rather than through Bali.

When it comes right down to it, isn’t life a continual process of trying to find your own balance as you juggle the many colored balls of work, play, family, friends, health, hobbies, spirituality, and everything else that makes up your life – while still taking time out to smell the flowers?

For me, the biggest challenge is managing my work life efficiently enough that I can take time away from it for the other things that matter to me. How about you? What balls do you juggle, and do you have any tips for maintaining your balance?

Someone who comments will win an autographed copy of His, Unexpectedly.

P.S. If you want to know more about me and my books, visit my web page [http://www.susanlyons.ca] where both of my writer personas, Susan Fox and Susan Lyons, hang out. You’ll also find more of my photography there. I’m also on Facebook [http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/Susan-Lyons-Fox/134094693294553].


***Nas Dean is the winner of this contest!!  Congratulations, Nas!  Please email totebag@authorsoundrelations.com with your full mailing address so Susan can get the prize in the mail to you!  Thanks to everyone who left a comment!***